JP2011061156A - Substrate processing apparatus, gas introducing apparatus, and method of manufacturing semiconductor device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate processing apparatus for improving throughput in processes of a substrate by reducing the time required for cleaning of a substrate holder or the substrate held by the substrate holder, to provide a gas introducing apparatus, and to provide a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device. <P>SOLUTION: The substrate processing apparatus includes a substrate holder 10 for holding a substrate and a gas introducing apparatus for introducing the gas into the substrate holder. The gas introducing apparatus includes a filter for radially releasing the gas while purifying the gas and a reducing part provided at the external circumference of the filter for reducing flow of the gas released radially from the filter. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus, a gas introduction apparatus, and a semiconductor device manufacturing method.

As a substrate storage container for transferring a plurality of substrates to a batch type substrate processing apparatus, for example, a carrier configured as a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod, hereinafter sometimes referred to as “pod”) is used. The carrier includes a substrate storage port through which the substrate is transported and a door that is detachably attached to the substrate storage port, and is configured in a substantially cubic box shape. Further, the substrate processing apparatus is provided with a carrier opening / closing device (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a “pod opener”) that opens and closes the substrate storage opening by attaching and detaching the carrier door. In order to suppress the formation of a natural oxide film on the substrate surface due to an increase in oxygen concentration in the carrier, and to suppress the adhesion of particles to the substrate due to contamination of the carrier internal space, the substrate is opened by an air supply pipe when the substrate storage opening is opened. An inert gas such as nitrogen (N ₂ ) gas is supplied from the storage port into the carrier to clean the inside of the carrier (see Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-7801

  However, when such a conventional technique is used, the distance between the inert gas supply pipe and the carrier substrate storage opening when the carrier door is opened is too large, or there is a gap between the substrate storage opening and the carrier door. Since it is too small, the inert gas hardly flows into the carrier, the time required for cleaning in the carrier increases, and the substrate processing throughput (processing capacity per unit time) may decrease.

  An object of the present invention is to reduce a time required for cleaning a carrier, that is, a substrate holder or a substrate held by the substrate holder, and to improve a substrate processing throughput, a gas introducing device, and An object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, a substrate holding body that holds a substrate and a gas introduction device that introduces a gas into the substrate holding body are provided, and the gas introduction device discharges the gas radially while cleaning it. There is provided a substrate processing apparatus comprising: a filter; and a throttle part provided on an outer periphery of the filter to restrict a flow of gas emitted radially from the filter.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a gas introduction device for introducing a gas into a substrate holding body for holding a substrate, wherein the filter discharges the gas radially while cleaning it, and the filter provided on the outer periphery of the filter. There is provided a gas introducing device including a throttle portion that restricts a flow of gas radially emitted from the gas.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, a gas introduction comprising: a filter that discharges gas while cleaning it radially; and a throttle that is provided on an outer periphery of the filter and throttles the flow of the gas discharged radially from the filter. There is provided a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising: a gas introducing step of introducing the purified gas into a substrate holder holding a substrate from the apparatus; and a processing step of processing the substrate in a processing chamber.

  According to the substrate processing apparatus, the gas introduction apparatus, and the semiconductor device manufacturing method according to the present invention, the time required for purging in the carrier can be shortened and the throughput of the substrate processing can be improved.

It is a perspective view which shows the outline | summary of a structure of the batch type CVD apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the front side of the pod opener shown in FIG. 1, and the structure of a wafer transfer port. It is a perspective view which shows the state which mounted the pod on the wafer transfer port of FIG. It is a perspective view which abbreviate | omits and shows the structure of the back side of the pod opener of FIG. It is a perspective view which expands and shows the vicinity (V part) of the closure shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the state which coat | covered the pod opener of FIG. 4 with the chamber. It is a front view which abbreviate | omits and partially shows the position of the inlet / outlet port of the inert gas in the vicinity of the pod opener shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is a right side view of FIG. 7. It is a top view which shows the structure of the vicinity of the wafer transfer port and pod opener which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the pod opener shown in FIG. 9, (a) shows the state before a pod opener removes the door of a pod, (b) shows the state which the pod opener removed the door, (c ) Shows a state where the nozzle with a hole fixed to the pod opener has moved to a position where nitrogen gas is ejected, and (d) shows that the back wall provided on the back side of the pod opener is in close contact with the chamber and puts in and out the wafer. Indicates the state of closing the mouth. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing which shows the continuation of the operation | movement of FIG. 10, (a) shows the state which spouts the inside of a pod by injecting nitrogen gas from a nozzle with a hole following FIG.10 (d), ( (b) shows a state in which the door is retracted to a predetermined position in the chamber, and (c) shows a state in which the mapping device maps the storage position of the wafer in the chamber. (A) is a front view which shows the structure of the gas introduction apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention, (b) is sectional drawing which follows the AA chain line of (a). It is sectional drawing which shows the structure replaced | exchanged for the aperture | diaphragm | squeeze part from which the slit width differs from the gas introduction apparatus shown in FIG.12 (b), (a) shows the structure which used the aperture | diaphragm | squeeze part with a wide slit width, (b) 1 shows a configuration using a narrowed slit portion. It is a flowchart figure which shows the manufacturing method of the semiconductor device which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the vicinity of the process tube which concerns on other embodiment of this invention, (a) is the front view, (b) is a gas introducing device when (a) is seen from the left side It is a left view which shows only. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the filter which concerns on one embodiment of this invention, (a) is the front view, (b) is the top view. It is a top view which shows the structure of the batch type CVD apparatus used in Example 1 and Comparative Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the time-dependent change of the oxygen concentration after the purge start in the measurement position shown in FIG.

<One Embodiment of the Present Invention>
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(1) Configuration of Substrate Processing Apparatus A substrate processing apparatus according to this embodiment is configured as a batch type CVD apparatus (batch type vertical diffusion / CVD apparatus) 1 as illustrated in FIG. The batch type CVD apparatus 1 includes a housing 2 constructed in an airtight chamber structure. A heater unit 3 is installed in the vertical direction above the one end (hereinafter referred to as the rear end) in the housing 2. A process tube 4 is disposed concentrically inside the heater unit 3. Connected to the process tube 4 are a gas introduction pipe 5 for introducing a raw material gas, a purge gas and the like into the process tube 4 and an exhaust pipe 6 for evacuating the inside of the process tube 4. A boat elevator 7 is installed on the side of the rear lower portion of the housing 2. The boat elevator 7 is configured to raise and lower a boat 8 serving as a first substrate holder disposed directly below the process tube 4 in the vertical direction. The boat 8 is configured to support a large number of wafers 9 in a state where the wafers 9 are horizontally aligned with their centers aligned, and to be transferred into and out of the processing chamber 4 a formed in the process tube 4.

  A pod access port (not shown) is provided in the front wall of the housing 2. The pod inlet / outlet is opened and closed by a front shutter. A pod stage 11 for performing alignment of the pod (carrier) 10 is installed at the pod loading / unloading port. The pod 10 as the second substrate holder is transported onto the pod stage 11 through the pod loading / unloading port. The pod 10 includes a wafer storage port (substrate storage port) 10b that is an opening through which the wafer 9 is taken in and out of the pod 10, and a door 10a that is detachably attached to the wafer storage port 10b. It is configured in a substantially cubic box shape. In the pod 10, a wafer storage chamber 10c configured to store a plurality of wafers 9 to be processed or processed is formed.

  A rotary pod shelf 12 is installed in the upper part of the center part in the front-rear direction in the housing 2. The rotary pod shelf 12 is configured to store, for example, a total of 16 pods 10. That is, the rotary pod shelf 12 has, for example, a four-stage shelf plate formed in a substantially bowl shape and is supported in a vertical direction so as to be rotatable in a horizontal plane. (Not shown) so as to rotate in one direction in a pitch feed manner. A pair of wafer transfer ports (substrate transfer ports) 13 for transferring a wafer 9 as a substrate to and from the pod 10 are arranged below the pod shelf 12 in the housing 2 in two vertical stages. Has been. A pod opener (carrier opening / closing device) 20 to be described later is installed in each of the pair of wafer transfer ports 13.

  A pod transfer device 14 is installed between the pod stage 11 in the housing 2, the pod shelf 12, and the wafer transfer port 13. The pod transfer device 14 is configured to transfer the pod 10 between the pod stage 11, the pod shelf 12 and the wafer transfer port 13, and between the pod shelf 12 and the wafer transfer port 13. A wafer transfer device 15 is installed between the wafer transfer port 13 and the boat 8. The wafer transfer device 15 is configured to transfer the wafer 9 between the wafer transfer port 13 and the boat 8. Further, a boat changer 16 is installed beside the boat elevator 7. The boat changer 16 is configured to replace a plurality of boats 8 with respect to the boat elevator 7.

  The pod openers 20 installed in the upper and lower wafer transfer ports 13 have the same configuration. Therefore, the configuration of the pod opener 20 will be described by taking the case where it is installed in the upper wafer transfer port 13 as an example.

As shown in FIG. 1, the pod opener 20 as a carrier opening / closing device includes a base 21 that forms a side wall vertically standing so as to partition the wafer transfer port 13 and the wafer transfer device 15 in the housing 2. Yes. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the base 21 has a wafer loading / unloading port 22 formed in a rectangular shape that is slightly larger than the door 10 a of the pod 10. Incidentally, since the base 21 is shared by the upper and lower pod openers 20, a pair of wafer loading / unloading ports 22 are opened in the base 21 so as to be vertically arranged in the vertical direction.

  In addition, under the base 21, the operations of the pod opener 20, the air cylinder device 26, and the rotary actuator 50 are controlled, and nitrogen from the filter 63a as a gas supply body into the closure housing chamber 61 and the wafer housing chamber 10c. A controller 80 is installed as a control unit for controlling the supply of the gas 62 and the introduction of the nitrogen gas 62 from the gas introduction device 67 into the wafer storage chamber 10c.

  As shown in FIG. 2, an angle-shaped support base 23 is fixed horizontally below the wafer loading / unloading port 22 on the main surface (hereinafter referred to as a front surface) of the base 21 on the wafer transfer port 13 side. . The shape of the support base 23 in plan view is formed in a substantially square frame shape with a part cut away. A pair of guide rails 24 are arranged on the upper surface of the support base 23 in a direction parallel to the front surface of the base 21 (hereinafter referred to as the left-right direction). The guide rails 24 arranged on the left and right are respectively laid so as to extend in a direction perpendicular to the front surface of the base 21 (hereinafter referred to as the front-rear direction). On each guide rail 24 arranged on the left and right, a mounting table 27 is supported through a plurality of guide blocks 25 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. The mounting table 27 can be reciprocated in the front-rear direction by an air cylinder device 26 installed on the upper surface of the support table 23.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the mounting table 27 is formed in a substantially square frame shape with a part cut away. On the upper surface of the mounting table 27, three positioning pins 28 are arranged at the apexes of an equilateral triangle and project vertically. The three positioning pins 28 are provided in three positioning recesses (not shown) that are submerged on the lower surface of the pod 10 when the pod 10 is mounted on the mounting table 27 as shown in FIG. It is designed to be inserted.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a guide rail 30 is laid horizontally in the left-right direction below the wafer loading / unloading port 22 on the main surface (hereinafter referred to as the back surface) of the base 21 on the wafer transfer device 15 side. Yes. The guide rail 30 is slidably supported so that a laterally movable table 31 formed in an angle shape can reciprocate in the lateral direction. An air cylinder device 32 is installed horizontally on the vertical member of the left-right moving table 31 in the left-right direction. The tip of the piston rod 32 a of the air cylinder device 32 is fixed to the base 21. That is, the left-right moving table 31 is driven to reciprocate in the left-right direction by the reciprocating operation of the air cylinder device 32.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a pair of guide rails 33 are arranged on the left and right on the upper surface of the horizontal member of the left-right direction moving table 31. Each guide rail 33 arranged on the left and right is laid so as to extend in the front-rear direction. Both guide rails 33 are slidably supported so that a longitudinal moving table 34 can reciprocate in the longitudinal direction. A guide hole 35 is provided at one end of the front-rear direction moving table 34 so as to extend in the left-right direction. A bracket 36 is fixed to one side surface of the left-right direction moving table 31. A rotary actuator 37 is installed on the bracket 36 vertically upward. A guide pin 38 standing vertically on the tip of the arm 37 a of the rotary actuator 37 is slidably fitted into the guide hole 35 of the front-rear direction moving table 34. That is, the front-rear moving table 34 is configured to be reciprocated in the front-rear direction by the reciprocating rotation of the rotary actuator 37.

A bracket 39 is vertically erected on the upper surface of the front-rear moving table 34. On the front surface of the bracket 39, a closure 40 formed in a rectangular flat plate shape slightly similar to the wafer loading / unloading port 22 is fixed vertically. That is, the closure 40 can be reciprocated in the front-rear direction by the front-rear direction moving table 34, and can also be reciprocated in the left-right direction by the left-right direction moving table 31. Then, the closure 40 moves forward, and a main surface (hereinafter referred to as “front surface”) facing the base 21 side of the closure 40 comes into contact with the back surface of the base 21 so that the wafer loading / unloading port 22 can be closed. It has become.

  As shown in FIG. 5, packing 54 as a sealing member is laid on the edge portion of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 in front of the base 21. The packing 54 is configured to seal the edge of the wafer storage port 10 b of the pod 10 and the edge of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 of the base 21 when the pod 10 is pressed against the base 21. Further, a packing 55 as a sealing member is laid in the vicinity of the outer peripheral edge of the front surface of the closure 40. The packing 55 is configured to seal the vicinity of the outer peripheral edge of the front surface of the closure 40 and the edge portion of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 on the back surface of the base 21 when the closure 40 is pressed against the base 21. Further, a packing 56 as a sealing member is laid inside the packing 55 in front of the closure 40. The packing 56 is configured to prevent foreign matter adhering to the door 10a from entering the installation chamber side of the wafer transfer device 15. For convenience, illustration of a chamber 60 and a back seal mechanism 68 which will be described later is omitted in FIGS. 4 and 5.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a pair of unlocking shafts 41 are arranged on the left and right on the center line in the vertical direction of the closure 40 and are rotatably supported by being inserted in the front-rear direction. A pair of pulleys 42 is fixed to the end of the unlocking shaft 41 on the main surface (hereinafter referred to as “rear surface”) side opposite to the base 21 of the closure 40. A belt 43 having a connecting piece 44 is wound between the pulleys 42. An air cylinder device 45 is installed horizontally above one pulley 42 on the back surface of the closure 40. The tip of the piston rod of the air cylinder device 45 is connected to the connecting piece 44 of the belt 43. That is, both unlocking shafts 41 are reciprocally rotated by the expansion and contraction operation of the air cylinder device 45. As shown in FIG. 2, an engaging portion 41 a that engages with a lock (not shown) of the door 10 a is projected at right angles to the front end portion of the closure 40 of both unlocking shafts 41. .

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 4, 6, and 9, a rotary actuator 50 is installed on one side of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 on the front surface of the base 21 so that the rotation axis thereof is vertical. . One end of an arm 51 formed in a substantially C shape is fixed to the rotary shaft of the rotary actuator 50 so as to rotate integrally in a horizontal plane. The arm 51 is inserted through an insertion hole 52 formed in the base 21. A mapping device 53 is fixed to the tip of the arm 51 on the back side of the base 21.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 9, a chamber 60 is laid on the back surface of the base 21 so as to accommodate the closures 40 of the upper and lower pod openers 20, respectively. The chamber 60 is divided into two, an upper chamber 60a and a lower chamber 60b, by the partition plate 70. The length in the left-right direction of the closure accommodating chamber 61 formed in the chamber 60 is set so as to allow the closure 40 to move in the left-right direction to completely open the wafer loading / unloading port 22. As shown in FIG. 9, an air supply pipe 63 serving as a gas supply unit serving as a flow path for nitrogen gas 62 that is an inert gas is connected to a part of the side wall of the chamber 60. In FIG. 9, the flow direction of the nitrogen gas 62 is indicated by an arrow.

As shown in FIG. 16, a filter 63 a made of a ceramic porous body having a plurality of fine pores, for example, as a gas supply unit is connected to the tip of the air supply pipe 63. Through this filter 63a, the nitrogen gas 62 is supplied into the chamber 60 and the wafer storage chamber 10c at low speed and non-directionally (radially). At this time, since the filter 63a functions as an air filter, even if particles are mixed in the nitrogen gas 62 flowing through the air supply pipe 63, the particles are captured by the filter 63a. Therefore, the nitrogen gas 62 is discharged into the closure accommodating chamber 61 after being cleaned by the filter 63a. The material of the filter 63a is not limited to ceramic, and may be stainless steel, nickel, quartz, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or the like. Incidentally, the flow rate of the nitrogen gas 62 released from the filter 63a varies depending on the flow rate and the pressure in the air supply pipe 63, but normally 0.05 to 0. 0 at a position about 20 mm away from the outer surface of the filter 63a. It is about 3 m / s.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 7, 8, and 9, a supply pipe 66 serving as a flow path for the nitrogen gas 62 is further provided in the side wall of the chamber 60. The air supply pipe 66 is composed of a flexible tube. A gas introducing device 67 for introducing nitrogen gas 62 into the closure housing chamber 61 and the wafer housing chamber 10 c is attached to the tip of the air supply pipe 66. The gas introduction device 67 is fixed to the closure 40 as shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, and moves in the closure accommodating chamber 61 as the closure 40 moves in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the gas introduction device 67 covers a filter part 67a composed of a ceramic porous body having a plurality of fine pores, like the filter 63a, and an outer periphery of the filter part 67a. And an aperture part 67b arranged. A gap is provided between the throttle portion 67b and the filter portion 67a in the radial direction for the flow of nitrogen gas 62 released from the filter portion 67a. The throttle portion 67b is a hollow tube, and its tip is closed. In addition, a slit 67c having a constant width parallel to the axis of the diaphragm 67b is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the diaphragm 67b. Preferably, the filter part 67a and the throttle part 67b are manufactured separately and combined when used. Thereby, for example, when the filter part 67a is clogged, only the filter part 67a can be replaced. Further, in order to adjust the flow rate and flow velocity of the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67, it is possible to appropriately select and use the narrowed portion 67b having a different width of the slit 67c. Furthermore, it is preferable to appropriately adjust the length of the slit 67c in consideration of the length of the filter portion 67a so that the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 uniformly hits the object.

  The nitrogen gas 62 that flows through the air supply pipe 66 and is supplied to the gas introduction device 67 is cleaned by the filter portion 67a, and then discharged radially from the fine pores of the filter portion 67a. The nitrogen gas 62 released from the filter part 67a increases the pressure in the throttle part 67b and is ejected from the slit 67c. Therefore, the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 has directivity. Therefore, by adjusting the direction of the slit 67c so as to face the wafer storage chamber 10c, a large amount of the nitrogen gas 62 can flow into the wafer storage chamber 10c deeply in a short time. In this embodiment, the nitrogen gas 62 is jetted from the gas introducing device 67 when the gas introducing device 67 moves in the closure accommodating chamber 61 together with the closure 40 and the back wall 69 closes the wafer loading / unloading port 65. Therefore, the direction of the slit 67c is preferably adjusted so as to face the wafer storage chamber 10c when the back wall 69 closes the wafer loading / unloading port 65.

  As described above, particles mixed in the nitrogen gas 62 flowing in the air supply pipe 66 are captured by the filter unit 67 a, so that no particles are generated inside the gas introduction device 67. As a result, if the gas introducing device 67 is used, even if the wafer storage chamber 10c is purged with the nitrogen gas 62, the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10c can be prevented from being contaminated with particles.

  As shown in FIG. 13, by adjusting the width of the slit 67c, the flow rate and flow rate of the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 can be adjusted as appropriate. In FIG. 13A, the flow rate and directivity of the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 are reduced by increasing the width of the slit 67c. On the other hand, in FIG. 13B, the width of the slit 67c is narrowed to increase the flow velocity and directivity of the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67.

  As shown in FIG. 9, an exhaust pipe 64 that exhausts nitrogen gas 62 ejected to purge the atmosphere in the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10 c is provided in a part of the base 21. 61 is connected to communicate. Wafer loading / unloading ports 65 are respectively opened at the positions of the chambers 60 facing the upper and lower wafer loading / unloading ports 22. Each wafer loading / unloading port 65 is configured as a rectangular opening having a size into which the door 10a of the pod 10 can be inserted.

  As shown in FIG. 9, a back seal mechanism 68 capable of protruding the back wall 69 toward the wafer loading / unloading port 65 of the chamber 60 is provided on the back surface of the closure 40. The back seal mechanism 68 is fixed to the same member (not shown) as the longitudinal moving table 34 and the bracket 39 shown in FIG. 5 and the bracket (not shown) of the back seal mechanism 68 and the bracket 39, respectively. An air cylinder device (not shown). A back-and-forth moving table (not shown) of the back seal mechanism 68 is supported on the guide rail 33 so that it can reciprocate in the front-and-rear direction independently of the front-and-rear moving table 34. The back-and-forth moving table and the bracket in the back seal mechanism 68 are connected and integrated. Further, the bracket of the back seal mechanism 68 is connected to the bracket 39 via the air cylinder device of the back seal mechanism 68. A back wall 69, which is the same size as the closure 40 and is larger than the wafer loading / unloading port 65, is fixed to the bracket of the back seal mechanism 68. Therefore, when the piston rod of the air cylinder device of the back seal mechanism 68 extends, the back wall 69 protrudes toward the wafer loading / unloading port 65 of the chamber 60 so as to close the wafer loading / unloading port 65, and the wafer loading / unloading in the chamber 60 is performed. The configuration is such that it can be in close contact with the edge of the mouth 65.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the back wall 69 is configured to be larger than the opening size of the wafer loading / unloading port 65. In the vicinity of the outer peripheral edge of the back wall 69 on the back side, a packing 57 for improving the sealing between the back wall 69 and the chamber 60 is laid. The packing 57 ejects the nitrogen gas 62 from the filter 63a and the gas introduction device 67 to purge the atmosphere in the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10c with the nitrogen gas 62, and in the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage. Oxygen, moisture, and particles in the atmosphere existing in the chamber 10 c are prevented from flowing into the installation chamber side of the wafer transfer device 15 in the housing 2. Further, the back wall 69 is fixed to the closure 40 by being brought closer to the air supply pipe 66 than the closure 40. That is, the back wall 69 is attached so as to be shifted in a direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction, which is the moving direction of the back seal mechanism 68. The back wall 69 and the back seal mechanism 68 constitute the back of the closure 40. That is, the back surface portion of the closure 40 is provided in the closure 40 so that the interval between the closure 40 and the wafer loading / unloading port 65 is adjustable and is shifted in the direction perpendicular to the interval. As described above, since the back wall 69 is disposed closer to the air supply pipe 66, when the back wall 69 and the chamber 60 are in close contact with each other, the gap between the closure 40 and the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10 is wide. Thus, the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 can easily flow into the wafer storage chamber 10c, and the atmosphere in the wafer storage chamber 10c can be efficiently purged. More preferably, as shown in FIG. 9, the installation location of the gas introduction device 67 is the side surface of the closure 40 on the side of the air supply pipe 66, and more preferably on the back surface of the back wall 69. The ejected nitrogen gas 62 is likely to flow into the wafer storage chamber 10c.

  In the present embodiment, a wafer transfer port (substrate transfer port) 13 is mainly configured by the support base 23, the pair of guide rails 24, the mounting base 27, the plurality of guide blocks 25, the air cylinder device 26, and the positioning pins 28. Is configured. The wafer transfer port 13 is configured to place the pod 10 thereon.

  In this embodiment, the movable part is mainly constituted by the closure 40, the unlocking shaft 41, the pulley 42, the belt 43, the connecting piece 44, and the air cylinder device 45. This movable part is configured to hold the door 10 a of the pod 10 placed on the wafer transfer port 13.

  In the present embodiment, the base 21, guide rails 30, 33, air cylinder device 32, front / rear moving table 34, bracket 36, rotary actuator 37, guide pin 38, bracket 39, and the movable part are used as a pod. An opener (carrier opening / closing device) 20 is configured. The pod opener 20 is configured to open and close the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10 by moving the door 10a of the pod 10 held by the movable portion together with the movable portion.

  Further, the chamber 60 according to the present embodiment is configured to surround at least the movable part and the wafer storage port 10 b of the pod 10.

  The gas introduction device 67 is fixed to the closure 40 of the movable part and is configured to introduce nitrogen gas 62 into the wafer storage chamber 10 c from the wafer storage port 10 b of the pod 10. In contrast, the filter 63 a is configured to supply the nitrogen gas 62 having a lower directivity than the nitrogen gas 62 released from the gas introduction device 67 into the closure housing chamber 61.

(2) Operation of Substrate Processing Apparatus Next, the operation of the batch type CVD apparatus 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference mainly to FIGS. Further, the operation described later is performed as one step of the method for manufacturing the semiconductor device. In order to facilitate the understanding of the description, in the following description, of the pair of wafer transfer ports 13 in the upper and lower directions, the upper wafer transfer port 13 is the upper port A, and the lower wafer transfer port 13 is the lower port B. To do.

(Pod placement process)
As shown in FIG. 1, a pod (carrier) 10 carried in from a pod loading / unloading port of the housing 2 and placed on a pod stage 11 is appropriately transported to a pod shelf 12 designated by a pod transport device 14. Stored temporarily. The pod 10 stored in the pod shelf 12 is appropriately picked up by the pod transfer device 14, transferred to the upper port A, and transferred onto the mounting table 27 of the upper port A as shown in FIG. At this time, the positioning recesses embedded in the lower surface of the pod 10 are respectively fitted with the three positioning pins 28 of the mounting table 27, whereby the positioning of the pod 10 and the mounting table 27 is executed.

(Door holding process)
When the pod 10 is mounted on the mounting table 27 of the wafer transfer port 13 and is aligned, the chamber 60 that at least surrounds the movable portion that holds the door 10a of the mounted pod 10 and the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10. The door holding process in which the movable part holds the door 10a is performed.

Specifically, the mounting table 27 is pushed in the direction of the base 21 by the air cylinder device 26, and as shown in FIG. 10A, the opening side end surface of the pod 10 which is the opening edge of the wafer storage port 10b is It is pressed against the opening edge of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 in front of the base 21. At this time, the opening side end surface of the pod 10 and the front surface of the base 21 are sealed by the packing 54 and the packing 56. When the pod 10 is pushed in the direction of the base 21, the unlocking shaft 41 of the closure 40 is inserted into the key hole of the door 10a. In this state, when the unlocking shaft 41 is rotated by the air cylinder device 45, the unlocking shaft 41 releases the locking of the door 10a by the engaging portion 41a engaged with the locking on the door 10a side.

(Process for opening wafer storage port 10b)
Next, an opening process is performed in which the pod opener 20 moves the door 10a of the pod 10 held by the movable part together with the movable part to open the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10.

  Specifically, the front-rear direction moving table 34 moves in a direction away from the base 21 by the operation of the rotary actuator 37. Then, as shown in FIG. 10B, the closure 40 is retracted into the closure accommodating chamber 61 of the chamber 60 while holding the door 10 a of the pod 10, whereby the door 10 a is moved to the wafer accommodating port 10 b of the pod 10. Extract from. As a result, the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10 is opened.

(Evacuation process)
When the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10 is opened, as shown in FIG. 10C, the rear surface is preferably arranged so that the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 can flow directly into the wafer storage chamber 10c. The left / right moving base 31 performs a retreat operation in the left / right direction with respect to the wafer storage port 10b so that the center of the wall 69 and the center of the wafer loading / unloading port 65 are aligned in the front / rear direction.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 10D, the back seal mechanism 68 is operated to cause the back wall 69 to protrude toward the wafer loading / unloading port 65 of the chamber 60. As a result, the back wall 69 and the chamber 60 are in close contact with each other through the packing 57, and the closure housing chamber 61 is isolated from the installation chamber side of the wafer transfer device 15 in the housing 2.

(Gas introduction process)
Next, a gas introduction process is performed in which the gas introduction device 67 fixed to the movable part introduces gas into the pod 10 from the wafer storage opening 10b opened in the above opening process.

  Specifically, after the closure housing chamber 61 is sealed by the back wall 69, the nitrogen gas 62 is jetted from the filter 63a and the gas introduction device 67 to the closure housing chamber 61 and the wafer housing chamber 10c. The ejected nitrogen gas 62 flows from the filter 63a and the gas introduction device 67 toward the exhaust pipe 64, thereby purging the atmosphere in the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10c. At this time, since the back wall 69 protrudes toward the chamber 60, the gap between the closure 40 and the back wall 69 becomes large, and thus the jetted nitrogen gas 62 flows through this gap. When the nitrogen gas 62 flows through the gap between the closure 40 and the back wall 69, particles generated by the operation of the back seal mechanism 68 are efficiently removed from the closure housing chamber 61 through the exhaust pipe 64. .

  Further, when the nitrogen gas 62 is ejected from the filter 63a and the gas introduction device 67 in the state of FIG. 10D, as shown in FIG. 11A, the ejected nitrogen gas 62 becomes the closure accommodating chamber 61 and the wafer accommodating chamber 10c. And then flows out from the exhaust pipe 64. The flow of the nitrogen gas 62 purges oxygen, moisture, particles, etc. in the atmosphere present in the closure chamber 61 and the wafer chamber 10c.

(Substrate processing process)
After the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10c of the chamber 60 are purged by the nitrogen gas 62, the wafer 9 is transferred from the pod 10 into the processing chamber 4a, and the wafer 9 is processed in the processing chamber 4a. Is done.

  Specifically, the left-right moving table 31 moves in a direction away from the wafer loading / unloading port 22 by the operation of the air cylinder device 32. As a result, as shown in FIG. 11B, the closure 40 holding the door 10 a moves to the retracted position of the closure housing chamber 61 separated from the wafer loading / unloading port 22 of the base 21. With the retracting movement of the closure 40, the wafer loading / unloading port 65 of the chamber 60, the wafer loading / unloading port 22 of the base 21, and the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10 are opened. At this time, since the atmosphere in the closure housing chamber 61 and the wafer housing chamber 10c is purged by the nitrogen gas 62 by the above steps, oxygen, moisture, etc. in the atmosphere are installed in the housing 2 in the housing 2. It is not released to the room side. Therefore, the occurrence of adverse effects such as contamination of the installation chamber of the wafer transfer device 15 and an increase in oxygen concentration is prevented.

  When the closure 40 is moved to the retracted position, as shown in FIG. 11C, the mapping device 53 is moved by the operation of the rotary actuator 50, and the mapping device 53 moves into the wafer storage chamber 10c. 22 and the wafer storage port 10b are inserted through. The mapping device 53 inserted into the wafer storage chamber 10c performs mapping by detecting a plurality of wafers 9 stored in the wafer storage chamber 10c. Here, the mapping is to confirm the location of the wafer 9 in the wafer storage chamber 10c (which holding groove the wafer 9 is in). When the mapping operation is completed, the mapping device 53 is returned to the original standby position by the operation of the rotary actuator 50.

  When the mapping device 53 is returned to the standby position, the plurality of wafers 9 of the pod 10 opened at the upper port A are sequentially loaded (charged) into the boat 8 by the wafer transfer device 15. At this time, since adverse effects such as contamination of the transfer space of the wafer transfer device 15 and an increase in oxygen concentration are prevented, adverse effects such as deposition of a natural oxide film and adhesion of particles on the wafer 9 being transferred are prevented. Is prevented from occurring.

  During the loading operation of the wafer 9 to the boat 8 by the wafer transfer device 15 in the upper port A, another pod 10 is transferred from the pod shelf 12 to the lower port B by the pod transfer device 14 and transferred. Subsequent to the positioning on the mounting table 27, the subsequent operations are simultaneously performed. Thus, if the mapping operation is simultaneously performed in the lower port B, the wafer transfer of the pod 10 waiting in the lower port B is completed simultaneously with the completion of the loading operation of the wafer 9 to the boat 8 in the upper port A. The loading operation of the wafer 9 into the boat 8 by the apparatus 15 can be started. That is, since the wafer transfer device 15 can continuously perform the wafer transfer operation without wasting a waiting time for the replacement operation of the pod 10, the batch-type CVD apparatus 1 according to this embodiment can perform the wafer transfer operation. , Its throughput can be increased.

When the operation of loading the wafer 9 into the boat 8 by the wafer transfer device 15 is completed at the upper port A, the operation of closing the empty pod is executed in a substantially reverse order to the operation of opening the pod. That is, the door 10a that has been retracted by being held by the closure 40 is returned to the position of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 by the left / right moving table 31, and inserted into the wafer loading / unloading port 22 by the front / rear moving table 34, and the wafer of the pod 10 It is inserted into the storage port 10b. When the door 10a is inserted into the wafer storage port 10b, the unlocking shaft 41 is rotated by the air cylinder device 45 to lock the lock of the door 10a. When the locking of the door 10 a is completed, the mounting table 27 is moved in a direction away from the base 21 by the air cylinder device 26, and the opening side end surface of the pod 10 is separated from the front surface of the base 21.

  The empty pod 10 in the upper port A with the wafer storage opening 10b closed by the door 10a is transferred to the pod shelf 12 by the pod transfer device 14 and temporarily held. When the empty pod 10 is carried out from the upper port A, the next pod 10 is carried into the upper port A. Thereafter, the above operation is repeated at the upper port A and the lower port B as many times as necessary.

  As described above, by loading the wafers 9 from the upper port A and the lower port B to the boat 8 by the wafer transfer device 15 alternately, a plurality of wafers 9 are loaded from the pod 10 to the boat 8. It will be done. At this time, the number of wafers 9 to be batch processed (for example, one hundred to one hundred fifty) is many times larger than the number of wafers 9 (for example, twenty-five) stored in one pod 10. A plurality of pods 10 are alternately and repeatedly supplied to the upper port A and the lower port B by the pod transfer device 14.

  When a predetermined number of wafers 9 are transferred from the pod 10 to the boat 8, a film forming process that is substantially waiting for the wafer transfer port 13 is executed in the process tube 4. That is, the boat 8 is lifted by the boat elevator 7 and is carried into the processing chamber 4 a formed in the process tube 4. When the boat 8 reaches the upper limit, the periphery of the upper surface of the seal cap that holds the boat 8 closes the process tube 4 in a sealed state, so that the processing chamber 4a is hermetically closed. In a state where the processing chamber 4a is airtightly closed, the exhaust pipe 6 is evacuated to a predetermined degree of vacuum, heated to a predetermined temperature by the heater unit 3, and a predetermined source gas is supplied by the gas introduction pipe 5 by a predetermined flow rate. Supplied. As a result, a predetermined film is formed on the wafer 9. When a preset processing time elapses, the boat 8 is lowered by the boat elevator 7 so that the boat 8 holding the processed wafers 9 is carried out to the original loading and discharging station (hereinafter referred to as a loading station). Is done.

(Substrate unloading process)
During the above film forming process, in the upper port A and the lower port B, discharging (discharging) work of the processed wafers 9 held in the other boat 8 is simultaneously performed. At this time, the nitrogen gas 62 is ejected from the filter 63a and the gas introduction device 67, whereby the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10c of the pod 10 are purged by the nitrogen gas 62. It will be filled with nitrogen gas 62. That is, the processed wafer 9 of the boat 8 that has been unloaded to the loading station is picked up by the wafer transfer device 15, loaded into the upper port A in advance, and stored in the empty pod 10 that has been opened with the door 10 a removed. The When the storage of a predetermined number of wafers 9 in the empty pod 10 at the upper port A is completed, the door 10a held and retracted by the closure 40 is returned to the position of the wafer loading / unloading port 22 by the left / right moving table 31. Then, it is inserted into the wafer loading / unloading port 22 by the front / rear moving table 34 and inserted into the wafer storage port 10b of the pod 10. When the door 10a is inserted into the wafer storage port 10b, the unlocking shaft 41 is rotated by the air cylinder device 45 to lock the lock of the door 10a. As a result, the nitrogen gas 62 is sealed in the wafer storage chamber 10c. When locking of the door 10 a is completed, the mounting table 27 is moved in a direction away from the base 21 by the air cylinder device 26, and the opening side end surface of the pod 10 is separated from the front surface of the base 21. Next, the pod 10 in which the processed wafer 9 is stored is transferred to the pod shelf 12 by the pod transfer device 14.

The pod 10 containing the processed wafer 9 and returned to the pod shelf 12 is transferred from the pod shelf 12 to the pod stage 11 by the pod transfer device 14. The pod 10 transferred to the pod stage 11 is unloaded from the pod loading / unloading port to the outside of the housing 2 and transferred to the next process such as a cleaning process or a film forming inspection process. Then, the pod 10 in which the unprocessed wafer 9 is newly stored is carried into the pod stage 11 in the housing 2 from the pod loading / unloading port.

  The loading / unloading (pod loading and pod unloading) work of the pod 10 to the pod stage 11 and the replacement work between the pod stage 11 and the pod shelf 12 are carried in / out of the boat 8 in the process tube 4 (boat loading and unloading). Since boat unloading) and the film forming process are performed simultaneously, the overall work time of the batch type CVD apparatus 1 is shortened.

  Thereafter, by repeating the wafer loading / discharging method and the film forming method according to the above description, the batch type CVD apparatus 1 performs predetermined substrate processing such as film formation by the CVD method, for example.

  Here, a method of forming a film on the wafer 9 housed in one pod 10 using the batch-type CVD apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment (a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device) is simplified, and the flowchart of FIG. To summarize.

  In S <b> 0 (placement step) in FIG. 14, the pod transfer device 14 places the pod 10 containing the wafer 9 on the wafer transfer port 13. In S1 (door holding step), the closure 40 holds the door 10a. In S2 (opening process), the closure 40 holding the door 10a moves backward and moves in the left-right direction. In S3 (gas introduction step), nitrogen gas 62 is introduced from the gas introduction device 67 into the wafer storage chamber 10c. In S <b> 4, the closure 40 holding the door 10 a moves to the retracted position in the closure accommodating chamber 61. The closure 40 holding the door 10a moves in the left-right direction and the forward direction, and moves to the front position of the pod 10. Further, the empty pod 10 in which the wafer 9 is empty is moved to the rotating shelf 12. In S <b> 5, the wafer 9 is transferred from the wafer storage chamber 10 c to the boat 8 by the wafer transfer device 15. In S <b> 6 (processing step), the wafer 9 loaded in the boat 8 is subjected to a thin film forming process in the process tube 4. After the empty pod 10 is placed on the substrate transfer port from the rotating shelf 12 and S1 to S4 are performed, the thin film formed wafer 9 is transferred again from the boat 8 to the wafer storage chamber 10c by the wafer transfer device 15 in S7. It will be posted. In S8, the closure 40 holding the door 10a in the retracted position in the closure accommodating chamber 61 moves in the left-right direction. In S9, nitrogen gas 62 is introduced from the gas introduction device 67 into the wafer storage chamber 10c. In S10, the closure 40 holding the door 10a moves in the left-right direction and moves forward in the front direction. In S11, the door 10a held by the closure 40 is fitted into the wafer storage port 10b and opened.

(3) Effects according to this embodiment According to this embodiment, at least one of the following effects (a) to (h) can be obtained.

(A) In this embodiment, since the directional nitrogen gas 62 is ejected from the gas introduction device 67 attached to the side surface of the closure 40, a large flow of the nitrogen gas 62 is formed in the wafer storage chamber 10 c of the pod 10. The Further, since the nitrogen gas 62 is ejected from the gas introduction device 67 into the wafer storage chamber 10c after the closure 40 is retracted in the back direction with the door 10a held and further retracted in the left-right direction, the base 21 and Nitrogen gas 62 is ejected in a state where the gap between the door 10a is large. As a result, according to this embodiment, the nitrogen gas 62 tends to flow deeply into the wafer storage chamber 10c, and the time required for purging with the nitrogen gas 62 in the pod 10 is shortened compared to the conventional case. That is, according to this embodiment, the throughput of the substrate processing apparatus is improved.

(B) Conventionally, in order to close the wafer loading / unloading port 65, the closure 40 has to be moved in the back direction until it comes into close contact with the chamber 60, which requires a large operating mechanism. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, by providing the back seal mechanism 68, the same effect as the conventional one can be obtained with a simple operation mechanism that does not require a large facility space. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the manufacturing cost of the substrate processing apparatus can be reduced, and the substrate processing cost can be reduced. In addition, according to the present embodiment, since the closure housing chamber 61 can be sealed by operating the back seal mechanism 68, the occurrence of adverse effects such as contamination on the installation chamber side of the wafer transfer device 15 and an increase in oxygen concentration is prevented. Thus, the yield of substrate processing can be improved.

(C) Further, in this embodiment, since the back wall 69 that operates separately with the pod opener 20 while moving in the closure accommodating chamber 61 is installed on the back side of the pod opener 20, after the door 10a starts to be opened. The time required to eject the nitrogen gas 62 can be shortened. As a result, according to the present embodiment, the throughput of the substrate processing can be improved.

(D) In the present embodiment, when the back seal mechanism 68 is activated and the back wall 69 is in close contact with the chamber 60, a gap is formed between the pod opener 20 and the back wall 69. Functions as a flow path of the nitrogen gas 62 from the filter 63 a and the gas introduction device 67 toward the exhaust pipe 64. Therefore, in the present embodiment, atmosphere retention in the closure storage chamber 61 and the wafer storage chamber 10c is suppressed. As a result, according to this embodiment, the time required for purging with the nitrogen gas 62 can be shortened, and particles generated by the operation of the back seal mechanism 68 can be efficiently passed from the closure housing chamber 61 through the exhaust pipe 64. Can be discharged. Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, particles generated in the vicinity of the back seal mechanism 68 are quickly discharged from the exhaust pipe 64, so that the particles ride on the flow of the nitrogen gas 62 released from the gas introduction device 67. As a result, it is possible to prevent the particles from adhering to the wafer 9.

(E) In the present embodiment, since the filter portion 67a of the gas introduction device 67 functions as an air filter, a filter device for removing contamination sources such as particles mixed in the nitrogen gas 62 flowing through the supply pipe 66 is provided. There is no need to provide it separately. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the configuration of the batch type CVD apparatus 1 can be simplified.

(F) Further, according to the present embodiment, the filter portion 67a of the gas introduction device 67 is a ceramic porous body or the like having a plurality of fine pores and is integrally formed. When clogging occurs, it can be easily replaced with a new one.

(G) Further, in this embodiment, since the filter portion 67a of the gas introduction device 67 is a ceramic porous body having a plurality of fine pores, the nitrogen gas 62 is uniformly distributed from the entire surface of the filter portion 67a. Is released. Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the slit 67c is a gap having a uniform width parallel to the axis of the throttle portion 67b, the nitrogen gas 62 is rectified and ejected from the slit 67c serving as the ejection port. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, since the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 is rectified, the nitrogen gas 62 easily flows deep into the wafer storage chamber 10c, and the atmosphere of the wafer storage chamber 10c is short. Will be purged. As a result, according to the present embodiment, the throughput of the batch CVD apparatus 1 is improved and the consumption of the nitrogen gas 62 is reduced.

(H) According to the present embodiment, since the gas introduction device 67 has a simple configuration including the filter portion 67a and the throttle portion 67b, the manufacturing cost of the gas introduction device 67 can be suppressed.

<Other Embodiments of the Present Invention>
Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  In the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the boat 8 is lifted into the process tube 4 by the boat elevator 7 after the wafer transfer device 15 has loaded the plurality of wafers 9 into the boat 8 from the wafer storage chamber 10c. . Here, for example, as shown in FIG. 15, two gas introducing devices 81 in the vertical direction and one in the horizontal direction are newly provided in the lower rear part of the housing 2, just below the process tube 4 and in the vicinity of the boat elevator 7. The nitrogen gas 62 may be introduced into the plurality of wafers 9 which are arranged and placed on the boat 8. Preferably, the nitrogen gas 62 may be jetted from the three gas introduction devices 81 toward the boat 8 before and during the boat 8 being lifted into the process tube 4 by the boat elevator 7.

  Similar to the gas introduction device 67, the gas introduction device 81 includes a filter portion 81a and a throttle portion 81b provided with a slit 81c serving as a spout, which is a gap having a constant width, on the outer peripheral surface. The direction of the slit 81 c is adjusted so as to face the boat 8 mounted on the boat elevator 7. As shown in FIG. 15 (a), the gas introduction device 81 arranged in the vertical direction is configured so that the blown nitrogen gas 62 is uniformly applied to all the wafers 9 loaded in the boat 8. It is configured to be longer than the loading range. Similarly, in the gas introduction device 81 arranged in the horizontal direction, as shown in FIG. 15B, the nitrogen gas 62 is loaded into the boat 8 while the boat 8 is being lifted by the boat elevator 7. It is configured to be longer than the diameter of the wafer 9 so as to uniformly hit all the wafers 9. In this way, before the processing in the process tube 4, the cleaned nitrogen gas 62 is jetted onto the wafer 9 using the gas introduction device 81 shown in FIG. 15, thereby transferring the wafer from the wafer storage chamber 10 c to the boat 8. Particles adhering to the wafer 9 during mounting can be removed. Therefore, if the gas introducing device 81 is used, defects such as pinholes can be prevented from occurring in the thin film formed on the wafer 9 in the process tube 4. When the boat elevator 7 lowers the boat 8 from the process tube 4, the nitrogen gas 62 may be jetted from the gas introduction device 81 to the processed wafer 9 to shorten the cooling time of the wafer 9.

  Further, for example, instead of fixing the gas introduction device 67 to the closure 40, it may be fixed to the chamber 60 in the vicinity of the filter 63a. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10 (c), the nitrogen gas 62 is removed from the gas introduction device 67 when the closure 40 is retracted in the back direction without further retracting in the left and right direction after the closure 40 is retracted in the back direction. Since ejection can be performed, there is an advantage that the time required to start purging with the nitrogen gas 62 can be shortened. However, fixing the gas introduction device 67 to the closure 40 is superior in that the time required for purging itself can be shortened. Further, the jet ports of the gas introduction devices 67 and 81 are preferably slit-shaped, since they can form a uniform gas flow without unevenness in the axial direction of the throttle portion, but are not limited thereto. For example, instead of the slits, a plurality of holes may be formed in the axial direction of the throttle portion, or two or more.

  Further, the wafer transfer port 13 does not have to be two upper and lower stages, but only one stage, or three or more stages such as upper, middle, and lower three stages.

  Further, as an apparatus for inserting the mapping device 53 into the wafer storage chamber 10c, an XY axis robot or the like may be employed instead of the rotary actuator 50. The mapping device may be omitted.

In the above embodiment, the case where a batch type vertical diffusion / CVD apparatus is used has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to such a form, and other film formation such as an ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) film formation apparatus. The present invention can also be suitably applied to batch-type substrate processing apparatuses such as apparatuses, diffusion apparatuses, oxidation / nitridation apparatuses, and etching apparatuses. Further, the substrate is not limited to the wafer 9, and may be a photomask, a printed wiring board, a liquid crystal panel, a compact disk, a magnetic disk, or the like.

Example 1
In Example 1 according to the present invention, using the batch type CVD apparatus shown in FIG. 17, the nitrogen gas 62 was ejected from the gas introduction device 67 and the atmosphere of the wafer storage chamber 10 c was purged with the nitrogen gas 62. Here, the batch type CVD apparatus shown in FIG. 17 is an example in which the filter 63 a is replaced with a gas introduction device 67, but differs in that the gas introduction device 67 is not fixed to the closure 40 but is fixed to the chamber 60. The others have the same components as the batch-type CVD apparatus shown in FIGS. Accordingly, the components in FIG. 17 corresponding to the components in FIGS. 9 to 11 are denoted by the same reference numerals as those used in FIGS. 9 to 11. Then, as shown in FIG. 17, with the door 10a removed from the pod 10 and the wafer 9 still loaded in the wafer storage chamber 10c, nitrogen gas 62 is introduced from the gas introduction device 67 into the wafer storage chamber 10c. The flow rate was 100 L / min and the change over time in the oxygen concentration at the deepest position (measurement position 90) of the wafer storage chamber 10c was measured. The measurement result of this oxygen concentration is shown in FIG. In Example 1, the flow rate of the nitrogen gas 62 in the vicinity of the slit 67c was about 1.5 m / s. Further, after the measurement of the oxygen concentration, it was confirmed whether particles were attached to the wafer 9, and no particles were attached to the wafer 9.

(Comparative Example 1)
In Comparative Example 1, the change over time in the oxygen concentration at the measurement position 90 was measured using the batch-type CVD apparatus shown in FIG. 17 under the same conditions as in Example 1 except that the throttle portion 67b was removed from the gas introduction device 67. . Therefore, in the first comparative example, the filter 63a is used as it is as the gas introducing device 67, so that the nitrogen gas 62 is discharged radially from the filter portion 67a into the chamber 60 at a low flow rate. The measurement result of the oxygen concentration is shown in FIG. 18 together with the measurement result of Example 1. The flow rate of the nitrogen gas 62 at a position about 20 mm away from the outer surface of the filter portion 67a is about 0.05 to 0.3 m / s.

(Measurement result of oxygen concentration)
As shown in FIG. 18, although the flow rate of the nitrogen gas 62 is the same in Example 1 and Comparative Example 1, the time required for the oxygen concentration at the measurement position 90 to drop to 5,000 ppm is comparative example. 1 was 3.5 minutes, whereas in Example 1, it was 1.5 minutes. From these measurement results, the nitrogen gas 62 ejected from the gas introduction device 67 has directivity toward the wafer storage chamber 10c, so that the nitrogen gas 62 easily flows deep into the wafer storage chamber 10c. It can be seen that the time required for purging is shortened.

  Incidentally, even if an attempt is made to purge the atmosphere of the wafer storage chamber 10c with the nitrogen gas 62 while the wafer 9 is loaded in the wafer storage chamber 10c, the wafer 9 stops the flow of the nitrogen gas 62. It cannot flow into the wafer storage chamber 10c but flows near the wafer storage port 10b. Therefore, when the wafer 9 is loaded in the wafer storage chamber 10 c, oxygen in the atmosphere of the wafer storage chamber 10 c diffuses slowly into the closure storage chamber 61. For example, when the nitrogen gas 62 is discharged from only the filter 63a at a flow rate of 100 L / min using the batch type CVD apparatus shown in FIG. 17, 600 ppm of oxygen is detected at the oxygen concentration detection port installed in the vicinity of the exhaust pipe 64. It took 3-4 minutes to reach the concentration. In this case, the variation in oxygen concentration in the wafer storage chamber 10c is large, and even if it is measured at 600 ppm at the oxygen concentration detection port, it is not uncommon for the measurement position 90 to be 5,000 ppm or more.

  In order to solve such a problem, the batch type shown in FIGS. 9 to 11 and the components similar to the components of the CVD apparatus are provided. It is also a proposal to increase the flow rate of the nitrogen gas 62 using a nozzle with a hole in which a large number of through holes are formed on the surface. However, since the nozzle with a hole does not have a filter function, it is necessary to install a new gas filter on the supply line for supplying the nitrogen gas 62, resulting in a new space and cost problem for the installation. . Furthermore, when a nozzle with a hole is used, the flow velocity in the vicinity of the nozzle is large, but there is a problem that it is difficult to realize a uniform flow of the nitrogen gas 62 because the flow velocity is reduced in portions other than the hole. When a nozzle with a hole is used, when the nitrogen gas 62 is stopped from being ejected, particles near the nozzle enter the nozzle and accumulate, and when the nitrogen gas 62 is ejected again, the particles are scattered around. There is a risk.

<Preferred embodiment of the present invention>
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be additionally described.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, a filter that includes a carrier that houses a plurality of substrates and a gas introduction device that introduces a gas into the carrier, the gas introduction device discharging the gas radially while cleaning the gas. And a throttle part provided on the outer periphery of the filter for restricting the flow of gas emitted radially from the filter.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a gas introduction device that introduces gas into a carrier that houses a plurality of substrates, the filter that discharges the gas radially while cleaning the gas, and the filter that is provided on the outer periphery of the filter. A gas introducing device is provided that includes a throttle portion that restricts the flow of gas radially emitted from the filter.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, a mounting step of mounting a carrier storing a plurality of substrates on a substrate transfer port, and opening and closing a door detachably attached to a substrate storage port provided in the carrier An opening step of holding and opening the movable portion of the apparatus, and the movable portion of the opening and closing device and the door held by the movable portion of the opening and closing device are provided in the substrate storage port of the carrier and the substrate transfer port. A retreating step for retracting into a chamber surrounding at least the substrate inlet / outlet; a filter for discharging the gas radially while purifying the gas; and a throttle unit provided on the outer periphery of the filter to restrict the flow of the gas discharged radially from the filter A gas introduction step for introducing the gas that has been cleaned into the carrier from a gas introduction device, and the substrate from within the carrier into which the gas has been introduced. It is transported to the sense chamber, a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having a processing step of processing the substrate in the processing chamber is provided.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, a carrier including a substrate storage port serving as a carry-in port when storing a plurality of substrates and a door attached to the substrate storage port;
A board transfer port on which the carrier is placed;
A carrier opening and closing device that opens the carrier by removing the door from the carrier placed on the substrate transfer port;
A chamber surrounding at least the movable part of the carrier opening and closing device that holds the door when the door is removed and the substrate storage port of the carrier;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a filter that is provided in the chamber and discharges radially while cleaning gas; and a gas introduction device that is provided on an outer periphery of the filter and includes a throttle unit that restricts a flow of gas discharged from the filter. Is provided.

Preferably, further comprising a control unit for controlling the gas introduction device and the carrier opening and closing device,
The control unit moves the movable part of the carrier opening / closing device through the filter while moving the movable part of the carrier opening / closing device in a direction parallel to at least the opening surface of the substrate storage port of the carrier placed on the substrate transfer port. Control is performed so that the purified gas is introduced into the carrier from the throttle.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, the substrate placed on the substrate delivery port in a chamber that at least surrounds the movable part of the carrier opening and closing device and the substrate storage port of the carrier placed on the substrate delivery port. The door is removed from the substrate storage port of the carrier in which the carrier is stored by the movable part of the carrier opening and closing device and retracted from the substrate storage port, and the gas is discharged radially while being cleaned by a filter of the gas introduction device, A step of restricting the flow of the gas emitted radially from the filter by a constriction part in the gas introduction device provided on the outer periphery of the filter, introducing the gas into the carrier, and processing the substrate from within the carrier And a process for processing the substrate in the processing chamber.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, the substrate placed on the substrate delivery port in a chamber that at least surrounds the movable part of the carrier opening and closing device and the substrate storage port of the carrier placed on the substrate delivery port. The door is removed from the substrate storage port of the carrier in which the carrier is stored by the movable part of the carrier opening and closing device and retracted from the substrate storage port, and the gas is discharged radially while being cleaned by a filter of the gas introduction device, A substrate transport method is provided in which the flow of the gas discharged radially from the filter is throttled by a throttle portion in the gas introduction device provided on the outer periphery of the filter, and the gas is introduced into the carrier.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for handling a carrier including a substrate storage port for taking in and out a substrate and a door detachably attached to the substrate storage port,
A board transfer port on which the carrier is placed;
A movable part for holding the door of the carrier placed on the substrate transfer port;
A carrier opening and closing device that moves the door held by the movable part together with the movable part to open and close the substrate storage opening;
A chamber surrounding at least the movable part and the substrate storage port;
There is provided a substrate processing apparatus comprising: a gas introduction device that is fixed to the movable portion and introduces gas into the carrier from the substrate storage port.

  Preferably, the apparatus further includes a gas supply unit configured to supply a gas having a lower directivity than the gas introduced into the carrier from the gas introduction device into the chamber.

  Preferably, the apparatus further includes a control unit that introduces gas into the carrier from the gas introduction device while the carrier opening and closing device moves the movable part together with the door.

Preferably, a gas supply unit that supplies a gas having a lower directivity than the gas introduced into the carrier from the gas introduction device into the chamber;
The gas is introduced from the gas introduction device into the carrier while the low-directional gas is supplied from the gas supply unit into the chamber and while the movable unit is moved together with the door. And a control unit.

Preferably, a gas supply unit that supplies a gas having a lower directivity than the gas introduced into the carrier from the gas introduction device into the chamber;
While moving the movable part together with the door, the gas supply unit supplies the low-directional gas into the chamber, and the gas introduction device introduces the gas into the carrier while supplying the gas. And a control unit that prevents the low-directional gas from being supplied from the unit into the chamber.

Further preferably, the chamber includes a second substrate storage port at a position facing the substrate storage port of the carrier,
The movable portion is attached with a back surface portion that closes the second substrate housing opening so that the interval between the movable portion and the movable portion can be adjusted and shifted in a direction perpendicular to the adjustment direction of the interval.

  Preferably, a gap between the movable portion and the back portion serves as a flow path for the gas introduced from the gas introduction device.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate transport method for handling a carrier including a substrate storage port serving as a loading / unloading port for a plurality of substrates and a door detachably attached to the substrate storage port. And
A door holding step in which the movable portion holds the door in a chamber surrounding at least the movable portion holding the door of the carrier placed on the substrate transfer port and the substrate storage port;
An opening step of moving the door held by the movable part together with the movable part to open the substrate storage opening;
A substrate having a gas introduction step of introducing a gas into the carrier from the substrate storage opening opened in the opening step by a gas introduction device provided in the movable portion, and a step of conveying the substrate from the carrier A transport method is provided.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device that handles a carrier including a substrate storage port serving as a loading / unloading port for a plurality of substrates and a door detachably mounted on the substrate storage port. There,
A door holding step in which the movable portion holds the door in a chamber surrounding at least the movable portion holding the door of the carrier placed on the substrate transfer port and the substrate storage port;
An opening step of moving the door held by the movable part together with the movable part to open the substrate storage opening;
A gas introduction step in which a gas introduction device provided in the movable part introduces gas into the carrier from the substrate storage port opened in the opening step;
And a step of transporting the substrate from the carrier.

1 Batch type CVD equipment (substrate processing equipment)
9 Wafer (substrate)
10 Pods (carriers)
10a Door 10b Wafer storage port (substrate storage port)
13 Wafer transfer port (substrate transfer port)
20 Pod opener (carrier opening and closing device)
60 Chamber 62 Nitrogen gas (gas)
67 Gas introduction device 67a Filter part 67b Restriction part 67c Slit

Claims (3)

A substrate holder that holds the substrate, and a gas introduction device that introduces gas into the substrate holder,
The gas introduction device includes a filter that discharges gas while cleaning it radially, and a throttle that is provided on the outer periphery of the filter and throttles the flow of gas discharged radially from the filter. Processing equipment. A gas introduction device for introducing a gas into a substrate holding body for holding a substrate,
A gas introduction apparatus comprising: a filter that discharges gas radially while purifying gas; and a throttle that is provided on an outer periphery of the filter and restricts a flow of gas discharged radially from the filter. From a gas introducing device comprising a filter that discharges gas radially while purifying gas, and a throttle that is provided on the outer periphery of the filter and restricts the flow of the gas discharged radially from the filter, to a substrate holder that holds the substrate A gas introduction step for introducing the cleaned gas,
And a processing step of processing the substrate in a processing chamber.